Allure of Darkness (What Evil Lies Beneath)
by AlldevilsAngels
Summary: "In every journey comes a moment... one like no other. And in that moment, you must decide between who you are... and who you want to be." ― J.C. Marino, Dante's Journey
**Allure of Darkness (What Evil Lies Beneath)**

 **Summary** **: "In every journey comes a moment... one like no other. And in that moment, you must decide between who you are... and who you want to be."**  
 **― J.C. Marino, Dante's Journey **

**Chapter One: Entering Dante's Inferno**

 _"Adam was but human—this explains it all. He did not want the apple for the apple's sake, he wanted it only because it was forbidden. The mistake was in not forbidding the serpent; then he would have eaten the serpent."_  
 _― Mark Twain, __Pudd'nhead Wilson _

* * *

Steve looked around his dorm room, unable to believe it.

The beds were enormous king sized canopy beds that faced opposite each other. One was covered in silk emerald green sheets and gold pillows, which Steve figured had to belong to his roommate, the other was bare.

Steve sat his bags on his bed and looked around the room. There were two desks, two dressers, a few shelves, a shared closet and a bookshelf almost as tall as the ceiling, handmade and hand-stained, with so many books that not all of them fit. Some books sit in neat little stacks on his roommate's desk. The rest were running along the window sill.

Whoever his roommate was, he'd obviously been living here awhile.

He also must have been extremely neat because nothing was out of place, the books appeared to be organized alphabetically and by color and size. His clothes, which were almost all expensive dress-shirts and pants, took up exactly fifty percent of the closet with his shoes lined up neatly at the bottom.

Steve hung up his church clothes and the only other suit he had ton his side of the closet and closed the door. Then he folded his jeans and T-shirts and put them in his drawer. Once he finished putting away his clothes, he paused to take a look at the arrangement of paintings and sketches that were splashed across the walls.

Most of them were angry and dark: A king with a bloody, gouged out eye, warriors spilling guts, icy blue monsters dancing and laughing, around dead bodies. There was a painting of an eight-legged horse struggling against its rider, a snake wrapped around a planet biting the end of his own tail hard enough to draw blood. A half rotted little girl having a tea party in hell with demons. A large wolf bound with old rope and a sword stabbed though it's snout so it couldn't move. A blue baby wrapped in a bloody blanket, crying in an icy abandoned wasteland. A man chained to the wall while snakes drip poison down his back and he screams.

There were a few more but it was the baby one that really affected Steve the most. The painstaking detail that was paid to each icy rock, the rusted color of the blood, and the special markings on it. It gave off an air of loneliness and pain that made Steve want to reach into the picture and cradle it in his arms.

He reached out his hand to touch the painting, when his roommate came in, and Steve jumped away from the painting as if he'd been caught stealing.

His roommate arched an eyebrow when he noticed Steve's anxious expression.

He had long ebony black hair that was slicked back to the nape of his neck, a white dress shirt, black slacks, and a green scarf. His skin was pale and he had cold emerald eyes, framed by long black lashes that on anyone else probably would have been feminine.

Steve watched him, unsure what to say.

"Um…Hi." Steve finally blurted as his roommate ran his eyes down Steve's body in blatant appraisal and took a big bite of the red apple he was holding in his hand.

After being greeted, his roommate's mouth twisted his mouth in an expression of distaste, and he walked around Steve as if he was used to finding strangers in his room.

He calmly put down his bag on his desk, grabbed a book of the shelf, and flopped down on his bed with his legs stretched out and his ankles crossed, taking another bite of his fruit.

"So…um…You're my new roommate, huh?" Steve said, moving closer to his roommate's side of the room.

His roommate green eyes were cold as ice when they met his.

"I would assume that would be obvious. Seeing as we're in the same room and both of our things are here." He stated, sardonically.

Steve blushed and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"You're right." Then extended his hand. "Steve Rogers of Brooklyn."

His roommate looked at his hand and then back at Steve. He smirked, his eyes glowing with amusement as he put his book on the bed and reached out and took Steve's hand in his own.

"Loki," he replied, before pulling his hand away, picking up his book, and going back to ignoring him.

"Loki?" Steve questioned and Loki shrugged.

"My parents are very fond of Norse Mythology." He explained, finally closing his book.

"What's your last name?" Steve asked, curiously.

Loki shrugged.

"I'm haven't decided as of yet…Ask me again in a few weeks and I may tell you," Loki said, and Steve wasn't sure whether he was joking or being serious.

"So…Loki," Steve asked, shifting uncomfortably under Loki's intense gaze, "Are there any rules that I should know?"

Loki arched another perfectly plucked eyebrow, chewing his apple.

"Rules?" he repeated.

"Yeah, Do's or don't. Any pet-peeves that I should be aware of, like music or food allergies?"

"Why, yes." He smirked, eyeing Steve like a piece of meat. "There are rules for this room. We'll go over them later though,"

"Okay," Steve said, and turned to finish putting away his things.

He pulled out his Military poster and his pictures of his family/friends.

Loki watched him as did each task barely blinking.

It was really creeping Steve out but he did his best to ignore it.

Steve glanced at Loki out of the corner of his eye and found his eyes glued to Loki's lips, the way they parted as he drew the red fruit to his mouth, the way his perfectly straight white teeth bit into the crimson skin, creating sharp crunch, and the way his pink tongue darted out to lick away the clear juice.

Steve swallowed against the sudden dryness of his mouth. He licked his lips, thirstily.

"Tell me, Rogers…do you like apples?" Loki asked, and Steve's eyes snapped away from his mouth, guiltily.

"Sure, they're okay," he said, hoping Loki didn't notice the pink tinge to his cheeks, and Loki reached into his bag.

He pulled out an apple, tossing it in the air and deftly catching in his hand without breaking eye contact.

"Aright," Steve said, holding out his hand, "Thank you,"

Loki's eye flickered to his hand and then back to his face.

"What are you doing?" he asked and Steve scratched his head confused.

"You offered me an apple,"

"I didn't say I was giving you an apple. I merely inquired if you wanted one," Loki informed him, lips curled into the barest hint of a smile.

"Why did you ask if I wanted one, if you weren't going to give me one?"

"You can tell a lot about a person based on how they feel about fruit," Loki said, cryptically. "Besides, you haven't earned an apple yet,"

"Earned? What am I? A pet?" Steve joked, and Loki's eyes sparkled with amusement.

"These are a special kind. I've grow them myself. They're completely organic. Would you like to try one?" Loki asked, and Steve shook his head.

"You wouldn't give me one if I said yes, would you?" Steve asked and Loki smirked mischievously.

"No," Loki slid out of bed and returned his book to the shelf. "Not until you earn it,"

He then went into the bathroom and, a few minutes later, Steve herd the shower running. Steve wondered if everyone here was like Loki.

He was a little strange…but he seemed to have a nice sense of humor so he couldn't be all that bad, right?

Steve licked his lips, wetting them, and sighed. He pulled out his star-spangled sheets and made up his bed.

His stomach growled and he wondered if he should invite his roommate out to lunch. It seemed impolite not to invite him along.

He sat on the edge of his bed and waited for Loki to come out. After an hour though, he started to worry. He knocked on the door.

"Loki? You okay in there?"

He didn't receive an answer.

"I'm kind of hungry. Do you want to join me for lunch?"

The door opened suddenly and Steve jumped back. Loki stood there, dripping wet, black locks now a mass of curls, with no towel in sight.

"Certainly," he said and walked past Steve would no hint of embarrassment at being seen unclothed. "Just give me a moment,"

Steve blushed and turned his back to him. Loki chuckled.

"No need to be shy, Rogers. Are we both not men?" he asked, but it sounded like a statement.

"Um…" Steve wasn't sure how to respond.

Loki opened up his closet and selected a nice light blue button-down shirt and a pair of tan trousers. He dressed in silence before grabbing a comb and some gel from his drawer. He slicked back his hair and tapped Steve on the shoulder.

Steve turned around and sighed in relief when he noticed Loki was clothed.

"Do you have a place in mind?" Loki asked, as they made their way out the door, and Steve shook his head.

"I don't really know my way around here. Wherever you want to eat is fine." He said.

Loki nodded and they walked in silence broken only by the crunch of Loki's apple. Loki led them into a small café, not far from the dorm. He found them a seat in the back corner and Steve wondered why he wanted to sit away from the other customers but didn't question him.

"May I take your order?" a young blonde waitress asked and Loki gave her a bored look.

"My usual," he stated and Steve wondered how often he came to this café. "And he'll have a hotdog and a slice of your raspberry cake,"

Steve wondered how Loki knew what he was going to order but wrote it of as a coincidence.

"Any drinks?" the waitress asked.

"Two coffees. Make mine a caramel apple spice coffee with extra whip cream and some shredded chocolate on top of the caramel drizzle and for him," he studied Steve for a moment, "give him a caramel macchiato…no foam." He drawled, and Steve's mouth dropped open.

"How did you-" he started and Loki waved away the question before he could finish it.

"That will be all," he said, dismissing the waitress.

Steve watched as Loki. He sat straight in his seat, hands folded on the table, as he watched the other customers. Steve wondered if that's why he picked the secluded seat in the corner…so he could people watch without getting caught. The waitress dropped off their drinks before moving on and Steve couldn't believe how good it was.

"This is delicious," Steve praised.

"Of course it is. I wouldn't acquiesce myself to food that is not up to part." Loki stated, taking a sip of his coffee.

"That's true," Steve agreed.

"So, tell me more about yourself, Rogers," Loki commanded, his voice sharp, as he wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"Not much to tell," Steve said.

"That's not true. What are your hopes, your dreams, your hobbies, your likes, dislikes? Tell me… who is Steve Rogers?" Loki said and Steve stared at him surprised.

"Okay, I'm here at the Marvel Academy on an Art scholarship. I have plans to join the military after I finish here. Likes…um…I like simple things, I guess. Dislikes? I don't think I really have any."

Loki rested his chin in his hand.

"Interesting. And your dreams?"

"My dream? I guess I just want to make a difference. I want to do something to be remembered for." He said with a shrug.

"A noble dream if there ever was one," Loki stated.

"What about you?" Steve asked.

Loki's eyes twinkled with laughter.

"What about me?" he asked.

"Tell me about yourself," Steve requested.

Loki shook his head.

"I'd rather not," he said, simply.

"Come on, I told you about me," Steve complained.

Loki shrugged.

"I merely asked a few questions. You made the choice to answer them." Loki said, pulling out his wallet and threw down money without even looking at it.

Then he rose from the table and gave Steve a curt nod.

"I have business to take care of. I shall try not to be out too late." He said, briskly and walked out of the café without a backwards glance.

Steve watched him go, puzzled.

His roommate was a strange one

* * *

 **Author's note: This is my first fanfic.**

 **Warning for past Thorki (Thor/Loki)**

 **This is going to be an extremely dark story with a lot of mindfucking and manipulative Loki.**

 **I'll put warning tags at the beginning of each chapter so make sure you read them.**

 **Please review and let me know what you think!**


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